A Growing Fire
by Willow Skye
Summary: A one-shot that explores the thoughts of both Alice and Hatter during their argument over the fire. Please enjoy and R&R!


_Author's Note: Just a simple one-shot that looks at the scene in Alice where Hatter and Alice are arguing over the fire. It's always intrigued me and it's one of my favorite scenes. This is basically my interpretation as to what each character is thinking over the course of their short little dialogue. Enjoy! Please R&R if you've got the time, I'd really appreciate it!_

A Growing Fire

"What I want to know is how we're gonna cut a deal with the White Rabbit. Is it really possible?" she asked, now that the clueless White Knight was out of earshot. Truly, the whole situation was bugging her more than she let on. Here she was—a regular, everyday, New York gal—trapped in the middle of a foreign place that only existed in the mind of one Lewis Carroll. Her only allies were a shady, albeit attractive, conman, and an old knight who had lost his marbles years ago. And to make matters worse, she was in the middle of a forest. Practically _camping._ The last time she had been camping was when her father was around, and even then, the only good part had been the s'mores. She much preferred the concrete jungle that was her city.

"I know a girl, Carlotta St. Delaware," he began. He smirked slightly, remembering the female who had once been a regular at his Tea House. And those _curves_! That luscious hair—oh, how he had loved to pet it! And…

And then she had sold him out. Exposed him. Made him work for the Hearts, just like every other coward in Wonderland. Oh yes, one thing was certain here: Carlotta owed Hatter.

_Carlotta? Now he's expecting me to put my trust into one of his former lovers? Is he mad?_ Alice thought.

The Hatter continued his explanation,"…who dates this guy, who used to play cards with a rich kid, who once stood low with an electrician, who works part time with one of the technical staff." He dared to crack a small smile before glancing over at Alice's face, which held a mixture of disbelief, confusion, and fury. "I did say it was a long shot." He stood, clearly ready to end their conversation, "But as long as you've got that ring, you've got a chance." Hatter turned away from Alice slightly, bracing himself for another lecture about _selling out_ and _how important it was that precious Jack gave her the ring_ and _oh Hatter, she's just _got _to keep it_.

Blah, blah, blah. Stupid Jack could go straight to Hell, for all Hatter cared. What was it about this guy that made her so…so…

So loyal?

So stubborn?

So…trusting?

_Maybe that's why you don't like the bloke_, he mused to himself. _He's got Alice's trust and you know very well that you haven't_. He wanted it though. He wanted to show Alice that he could be trusted, that he had meant it when he had told her that he would protect her. _Can anyone ever truly be protected in Wonderland? Especially an Oyster named Alice?_

"You?"

Her statement interrupted his thoughts. Hatter glanced back at Alice, where he could clearly see the confusion and anger on her face etched out by the glow of the fire as she stood up.

"What happened to _we_?" she questioned. And to think that she had almost trusted this man! He was a con artist, plain and simple. He simply couldn't be given any opportunity to finagle his way into her heart.

Wait a minute.

Her heart?

Oh no, oh no, no, no, no, no! Hatter had certainly _not_ made his way anywhere _near_ her emotional core.

Right?

She was here for Jack and Jack only. Jack was the one she trusted, the one she let down, the one who needed her help.

Not this conman with the really nice eyes.

Hatter sighed. _Here we go_. "I can't leave, Alice," he paused to see if she understood him. When he saw that she didn't, he continued, "Wonderland's my home. I can't just abandon it, despite what I said. I have to stay and fight."

Alice said the only thing that came to her confused mind in that moment: "What?" This was unexpected. Weren't conmen supposed to be selfish and only look out for their best interests? Though, when she thought about it, nothing about Hatter fit that description at all. He continued to stay by her side even after his agenda with Dodo fell flat. He tried to lure the Jabberwocky away from her, to protect her. And even now, he was thinking of his kingdom before he put his personal safety at the forefront of his mind.

Hatter wasn't selfish at all; he was selfless. A selfless conman. Only network television would believe that one.

_Still no response from her_. Hatter continued his ramble, "Seeing all this, look!" Hatter gestured to the glorious Kingdom of the Knights, with its beautiful, tall structures and its deteriorated throne room with its equally deteriorated king. "This great kingdom and what…what's become of it. It's a wake-up call, to be honest. My people, I mean, the…the hundreds of refugees who are all hiding, underground. They're counting on me." As Hatter continued ranting, he suddenly realized just how true everything he said was. And it couldn't just be hundreds of refugees at this point…had to be thousands…and even more were dead…

No. No. This was not happening. She couldn't lose her ally, even if she didn't trust him. How could she get him to change his mind? He was almost as stubborn and steadfast as she was. "But didn't that Dodo guy tell you that he was gonna have you hunted down and killed?"

_Damn._"Yup." _Here comes the confession part of the plan…you are so getting railed on for this one._ "But…I'm thinking if I turn up with the ring, he might forgive me." He quickly looked away from Alice, as hard as it was for him to do. His jaw involuntarily clenched, preparing itself for a much-deserved onslaught of anger and distrust.

_Distrust. Again. Always with the distrust._

Even then he still couldn't bring himself to look at her. This time, he knew he didn't deserve what he coveted from her. Three little words:_ I trust you_.

She looked as though the answer to a confusing question had just been revealed to her, like she had been enlighted on a dark subject, one she would have preferred to remain ignorant of, "So that's was what this was about." _You should have seen this coming, you idiot_, she silently told herself, _who trusts conmen? No one. This is your own stupid fault._

"Don't worry, I'll get you home safe and sound first," he rushed to assure her. Maybe this way he could earn back a tiny bit of that trust they were slowly building with each other.

Her lips pursed and her head nodded slightly. _No reason to not believe that. Yet. _"And Jack?" She saw him step back, clearly agitated by the name. What was it about the slightest mention of Jack that set him off? Hatter, from the beginning, had always been a bit flippant about that part of her escape plan; Jack had to be rescued too. He had neglected to learn Jack's name and refused to let her believe that she could easily leave Wonderland with Jack at her side. She heard him breathe out; it wasn't quite a sigh, it was more of a huffy breath, like a sound a bull would make right before leaving his pen. Hatter turned around and paced a bit, then suddenly whirled at her.

"You have to forget about Jack. We'll never get him out of the casino alive and trying is only gonna set off alarm bells! It'll make your escape impossible!" He saw her shaking her head before he even finished, felt his voice rise slightly as he desperately tried to get through to her that she was the only one who could be saved. Now it was her turn to pace away from him, under the guise that she was feeding the fire. The tension between them mounted and the invisible fire that was between them roared. She quickly cut him off.

"Okay, so you were just leading me on back there." Typical con. She should know better than to fall for something like this. Another dangerous breath escaped his lips as he yelled at her.

"Just believe me it'll be suicide!" She sat down, choosing to ignore his warning. She turned her back briefly before facing the fire again, and when she did, Hatter couldn't help but stare at the way the flames made the light dance on her face, showing off all of her emotions. Determination, stubbornness, confusion, sadness, loyalty…

Again with the loyalty. No one in Wonderland had ever shown Hatter what it meant to be so loyal to, well, anything. He wanted it. But not just any loyalty. _Her_ loyalty. It was pure, raw, and completely intriguing. Yes. He wanted her loyalty and her trust.

At this rate, he was going to have a hard time getting either one.

He watched as the flames continued to highlight her face. He'd never really taken the time to notice before, except for when they had first met, but she was actually quite beautiful. Her body and her emotional soul had combined to create one of the most fascinating creatures Hatter had ever dared lay his eyes on.

"Jack's a lucky guy," he breathed out, mostly to himself. It wasn't anything he wanted her to hear, at least not right now, but it was something that he felt so strongly that he simply couldn't keep the words bottled up inside. Her head shot up sharply. _Did she hear?_

"What?" _Did he just say something? I could have sworn he just said…_

"Nothin'," Hatter shook his head, dismissing his previous statement, though his puppy dog eyes remained firmly in their place as he looked on at her. "Look it's late. We all need our…rest," he said as he walked over to where she was sitting. He knelt down to her level once he reached her side, "We can…argue about this tomorrow, yeah?" No response. Figures she would still be stubborn. He turned and went to find a place to rest. Surely she knew that he would do anything for her, follow her anywhere, as long as she was safe and sound?

It was at that moment that he realized he would do anything for the girl he had only met a day ago.

She watched him go in her peripheral vision, his walk slow and in no immediate hurry. She should have said something…or asked if maybe he really did say…but that couldn't be, could it? And besides, it's not like she was…or would even want him to say something like…

Right?

Alice continued to watch as Hatter's arm lifted up to wipe his forehead and was surprised to see his hat go with his arm as he reached down. She saw his thick brown hair all matted and pointing in all directions. Something about it was undeniably sexy.

Wait. WHAT?

No. Must…focus…on…

It was at that moment that Alice Hamilton realized that she was in far more deep than she ever imagined she would be.


End file.
